Machines for washing continuous textile lengtils



1964 R. c. GRIMES 62, 33

MACHINES FOR WASHING CONTINUOUS TEXTILE LENGTHS Filed Aug. 29, 1963 2 Sheets-Sheet l Dec. 22, 1964 R. c. GRIMES 3,162,033

MACHINES FOR WASHING CONTINUOUS TEXTILE LENGTHS Filed Aug. 29, 1963 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 //v1/E/vr Rees/2r C E United States Patent 3,162,033 lvlACHINES non wAsnrur. eoNrrNUons "rnxrirn LENGTHS Robert Charles Grimes, 45 Gerrard St., London, England Filed Aug. 29, I963, eru No. $495,497 4 Claims. ((15. 68-22) "cotton fabric towelling such as the soiled rolls of towelling unloaded from towel-dispensing cabinets. It relates to machines of the type which employ a framework having mounted therein a plurality of horizontally disposed squeezing rolls between which the pre-soaked length of material passes, said rolls being mounted in vertical line one above the other and associated with jockey or outrigger rolls on each side of the squeezing rolls to enable loops of the material to be formed in zig-zag fashion and to be held tensioned while cleansing liquid for re-soaking the material is applied to the loops. In this type of machine a succession of squeezing and re-soaking actions are applied to the material as it is drawn through the machine. When the invention is applied to washing soiled towelling this is originally rolled in continuous fiat web form, and although this could be treated in such a flat web form it is advantageous to bunch and twist it longitudinally in irregular folds to form a so-called rope which gives more body for squeezing, and for convenience the continuous length of material will be referred to as a rope.

The primary object of the invention is to construct and arrange the roll assembly so that the squeezing pressure applied to the rope during its travel through the machine is easily adjustable so as to assist (in conjunction with resilient yieldable Outriggers) in maintaining uniform tension on the rope throughout its travel between and around the various rolls.

It will be appreciated that with a single stack of squeezing rolls, one above the other with their peripheries in contact for squeezing, and in which each alternate roll is power-driven, there is a difiiculty in adjusting the pressure between the rolls, so that the succession of individual nips may vary in their applied pressure bringing in its wake a variation in tension of the difierent runs of the rope between the squeezing nips and the outrigger rolls. Without some automatic tension-adjusting device, the rope will not run through the machine uniformly and an excessively tight strain in some of the runs coupled with a sagging at others may result in forced stoppages. In the present invention pressure at the nips is applied laterally as distinct from vertically.

According to the invention there are employed two vertical lines of squeezing rolls, the rolls of one line being power-driven, and those of the other line (the second line) being driven by rolling engagement with those of the first line, the individual rolls of each line being spaced apart vertically, and the two lines being so juxtaposed that the rolls of one line alternate with those of the other and are in peripheral contact with one another, the rolls of the second line being each cradled on a pair of the driven rolls to form squeezing nips, means to press the lines of rolls together, in conjunction with two vertical lines of outrigger rolls, one line spaced from and parallel to the aforesaid first line and one spaced from and parallel to the second line. v

In order that the said invention may be readily understood, an embodiment thereof will be described byway. of example, with the aid of the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a diagram ofa washing unit forming part of an installation including the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a view to a larger scale showing the middle of FIGURE 1 including the roller system of the present invention; and

FIGURE 3 is a plan view, to a still larger scale, of part of FIGURE 2 looking from the plane IIIIII.

FIGURE 4 is a diagram hereinafter described.

Like numerals of reference indicate the same or corresponding parts in the several views.

Referring first to FIGURE 1, this represents one unit of an installation of a battery of units such as depicted in the drawings of co-pending application Serial No. 305,499, filed Aug. 29, 1963, to which the present invention is particularly applicable. There is a suitable framework indicated by the broken lines 1 in which a squeezing roll assembly designated generally 2 and outrigger rolls 3 are mounted together with electric motors for driving the power-driven rolls of the assembly 2. A reception tank denoted generally by the numeral 4 is mounted on this framework and is of J-shape with the long leg 5 of the J inclined out ofthe vertical and open at the top for the reception of the soiled rope shown by the simple line '7 in FIGURE 1, broken in places where it is enclosed, and by the double lines '7 in FIGURE 2. The rope is fed in at the right-hand side of FIGURE 1 and descends to the curved part 8 of the J Where it loosely bunches and folds zig-zag and otherwise to be drawn off by the squeezing roll assembly 2. It passes through a guide eye 9, and to commence, is threaded through the hips of the squeezing rolls, around the Outriggers 3, and finally led out for subsequent treatment or into a succeeding machine the reception tank of which is seen at 4 on the left-hand side of FIGURE 1.

The liquid supply and distributory system forms no part of the present invention and is described in the aforesaid co-pending application. Of this system 12 denotes a spray ring having horizontal perforated spray tubes 13 which extend between the runs of the rope 7. Journalled between a pair of parallel vertical angle bars 149 of the framework 1 there is a first vertical line of horizontal rolls 11 of the assembly z'spaced apart in the vertical direction. The journals are in pillow blocks 14 (FIGURE 3) fixed to the angle bars 16) so that the rolls of this line are immovable in directions parallel to their respective axes. They are hard surfaced rolls, e.g. of stainless steel, and are each driven by an electric motor 27 through gear box 28, via gear box 29 to the shafts 30 of the said rolls II as indicated in FIGURE 4. They form squeezing rolls complementally with a second line of rolls 15 as follows. This second line of rolls 15 is also vertically disposed with its rolls spaced apart and parallel with those (11) of the first line. They are juxtaposed with the rolls of the first line and alternate with them and the two sets of rolls are in peripheral contact with one another (as shown in FIGURE 2). The rolls 15 of this second line are each cradled on a pair of rolls 11 in the first and driven line so that the rolls 15 are driven thereby, Thus, if there are, say, five power-driven rolls 11 as illustrated, there would be four rolls 15 of the second line cradled each on two of the driven rolls 11.

The rolls 15 of the second line may be termed pressure rolls because they are resiliently pressed into the cradle against the other rolls 11 in the following manner. Between the same parallel vertical angle bars which support the aforesaid line of driven rolls 11 the said second line of pressure rolls are'mounted supported on hanger bearings denoted generally by the ref erence 16 mounted on the said vertical angle bars 10. The hanger bearings 16 each comprise a bearing block 1'7 in which the spindle 18 of the pressure roll is journalle'd and the bearing block 17 is carried by a spindle 19 (FIG- URE 3) passing through the angle bar 1% and terminating in a head or locked nut 20 between which and the angle bar a. compression spring 21 encircling the spindle 19 is housed. By this means the pressure roll 15 is resiliently pulled towards the vertical angle bars 19 and against the power-driven rolls 11 against which it is cradled. It will be obvious that the force of the compression springs 21 may easily be modified as occasion demands and thus the pressure exerted by the individual rolls 15 of the second line may be readily adjusted while the machine is running. This deals with two squeezing nips simultaneously because each pressure roll 15 is brought into contact by the cradling arrangement with the peripheries of two driven rollers 11. The two lines of co-acting squeezing rolls 11 and 15 respectively constitute the squeezing roll assembly.

Still taking the illustrated example a vertical line of five fixed axis power-driven rolls 11 co-acting with a line of four yieldab'le axis pressure rolls 15 to make up the squeezing assembly, the following arrangement of outrigger rolls is provided. On the side where the powerdriven rolls 11 are located (i.e. on the left of FIGURES 1 and 2), there is a vertically aligned pile 3 of outrigger rolls 22 carried by fixed vertical frame memberrs 23, 24

by resilient means (e.g. springs 25) so as normally ca pable of being pulled away towards the squeezing roll assembly. This line 3 of outrigger rolls 22 have their respective axes horizontally level with the axes of pressure rolls 15 of the squeezing roll assembly, On the other side of the latter (i.e. on the right of FIGURES l and 2), a further vertically aligned pile or line 3 of outrigger rolls 22a is located, also being carried by resilient mountings normally'pulling them away from the squeez ing roll assembly; these-in the eXampleare three in number and have their respective axes horizontally level i with the axes of the intermediate driven rollsll of the squeezing roll assembly.

By this construction and arrangement the rope of towelling 7 can be brought up from a soaking tank 8, FIGURE 1, around the lowermost outrigger 22 on one side of the squeezing roll assembly, passed around the lowermost driving roll 11 through a squeezing nip between it and the lowermost pressure roll 15, back to the next higher outrigger 22 on the same side, then inwardly to the next nip between the succeeding driving roll 11 and the same pressure roll 15, out to the other side of the squeezing roll assembly and around the lowermost outrigger roll 22a on that side, back to the underneath part of the pressure roll 15 next above the lowermost one, through the nip of the lower driven roll 11 contacting the'same, and away to another outrigger on the driven roll side, and so on zig-zagging from side to side, passing through the pressure roll assembly on each occasion.

Eventually the rope 7 leaves the squeezing assembly at the top and is drawn off, either finished or for another run in a similar machine (such as indicated on the left of FIGURE 1), or in a rinsing machine.

In the meantime, the runs of the rope between the with fresh washing liquid by the pipes 13 supplied for the purpose, so that after squeezing they are resoaked for the next squeeze.

The length of the rolls may be sufiicient to deal with a plurality of side-by-sidc simultaneously running ropes squeezing roll assembly and the outrigger rolls are sprayed 1 7, and vertical separator posts 26 may be erected to guide and keep each run to its own path.

I claim:

1. Machine for washing continuous lengths of textile and other materials including a framework, a roll assembly consisting of a plurality of horizontally disposed rotatable squeezing rolls mounted in vertical alignment and two columns of horizontal jockey rolls also rotatable and in vertical alignment and laterally spaced from said squeezing rolls, one column on each side thereof, all said rolls being mounted in said framework, a liquid supply and distributory system for soaking material passing into the roll assembly, said squeezing rolls being arranged in two vertical lines, the rolls of one line being power-driven and those of the other line (the second line) being driven by rolling engagement with those of the first line, the in dividual rolls of each line being spaced apart vertically and the two lines being so juxtaposed that the rolls of one line alternate with those of the other and are in peripheral contact with one another, the rolls of the second line being each cradled on a pair of the driven rolls to form squeezing nips, and means to press the two lines of squeezing rolls together in a lateral direction.

2. A machine for washing continuous lengths of textile and other materials as claimed in claim 1 in which the rolls of the power-driven vertical line of squeezing rolls are mounted in bearings so as to be axially immovable, and the rolls of the second line are resiliently pressed against those of the first-mentioned line by means whereby the applied pressure is adjustable.

3. A machine for washing continuous lengths of textile and other materials as claimed in claim 1 in which the rolls of the power-driven vertical line of squeezing rolls are mounted in bearings so as to be axially immovable and the rolls of the second line are each carried by a respective hanger bearing having a spindle slidable in a fixed frame member and encircled by a compression spring serving to draw the bearing and hence the roll carried thereby towards the power-driven rolls.

4. A machine for washing continuous lengths of textile and other materials as claimed in claim 1 in which the rolls of the power-driven vertical line of squeezing rolls are mounted in bearings so as to be axially immovable and the rolls of the second line are each carried by a respective hanger bearing having a spindle slidable in a fixed frame member and encircled by a compression spring serving to draw the bearing and hence the roll carried thereby towards the power-driven rolls, the said jockey rolls being carried by fixed frame members by resilient means so as to be normally capable of being pulled against resilient resistance towards the squeezing roll assembly. 

1. MACHINE FOR WASHING CONTINUOUS LENGTHS OF TEXTILE AND OTHER MATERIALS INCLUDING A FRAMEWORK, A ROLL ASSEMBLY CONSISTING OF A PLURALITY OF HORIZONTALLY DISPOSED ROTATABLE SQUEEZING ROLLS MOUNTED IN VERTICAL ALIGNMENT AND TWO COLUMNS OF HORIZONTAL JOCKEY ROLLS ALSO ROTATABLE AND IN VERTICAL ALIGNMENT AND LATERALLY SPACED FROM SAID SQUEEZING ROLLS, ONE COLUMN ON EACH SIDE THEREOF, ALL SAID ROLLS BEING MOUNTED IN SAID FRAMEWORK, A LIQUID SUPPLY AND DISTRIBUTORY SYSTEM FOR SOAKING MATERIAL PASSING INTO THE ROLL ASSEMBLY, SAID SQUEEZING ROLLS BEING ARRANGED IN TWO VERTICAL LINES, THE ROLLS OF ONE LINE BEING POWER-DRIVEN AND THOSE OF THE OTHER LINE (THE SECOND LINE) BEING DRIVEN BY ROLLING ENGAGEMENT WITH THOSE OF THE FIRST LINE, THE INDIVIDUAL ROLLS OF EACH LINE BEING SPACED APART VERTICALLY AND THE TWO LINES BEING SO JUXTAPOSED THAT THE ROLLS OF ONE LINE ALTERNATE WITH THOSE OF THE OTHER AND ARE IN PERIPHERAL CONTACT WITH ONE ANOTHER, THE ROLLS OF THE SECOND LINE BEING EACH CRADLED ON A PAIR OF THE DRIVEN ROLLS TO FORM SQUEEZING NIPS, AND MEANS TO PRESS THE TWO LINES OF SQUEEZING ROLLS TOGETHER IN A LATERAL DIRECTION. 